Top 10 Thai Food Dishes I

Thai cuisine is a favorite of gourmet food aficionados around the world. It is well known for diversity of ingredients, complex spiciness and intricate flavors and aromas. Many Thai dishes are even prepared with a blend of herbal ingredients that are purported to have health benefits.

There is such a broad range of favorite Thai food dishes available that many people will come to Thailand and wonder where to begin; and so, I have prepared this article to present a list of my Top 10 Favorite Thai Dishes.

An important (mostly unconscious) principal of Thai food is a balance of five flavors - spicy, salty, sweet, sour and bitter. The one indispensable ingredient which is used in seasoning many Thai dishes is fish sauce. Fish sauce is considered an essential ingredient in Thai cooking in much the same way as soy sauce is important to Chinese cooking. Thai food is easten either as a single diseg or with rice. Steamed rice is the staple food althought sticky rice is more popular in the north and northease of Thailand where special rice varienties are produced for their sticky starch qualities.

Thai food is one of many things that you should not miss while you are traveling in this beautiful " Land of Smiles". Since there are countless delectable Thai dishes, U am writing this guideline for you to selct the most popular and authentic from the plenthora of Thai signature dishes.

The following list is a top 10 favorite Thai food dishes that you must not miss. The consideration and ranking is based on the popularity, uniqueness and authenticity of these Thai delicacies. Here are the winners of my Top 10 Thai Food Dishes.

10. Gai Pad Met Mamuang (Stir-Fried Chicken with Cashew Nuts) Even through Gai Pad Met Mamuang does not represent the overview of Thai food but it is a very nice treat to your taste buds. Since it is by no means spicy or hot, this slightly sweet and salty chicken fried with crunchy cashew nuts is aptly satiating for children of beginners who are not used to spices.

9. Por Pia Tord (Fried Spring Roll) Fried spring roll is one of the most popular appertizers for foreginers because it is not spicy and cornes with sweet and sour dip. Spring roll are crispy pastries with fried vegetable fillings. Though spring roll are commonplace in many Southease Asian countries, Thai Por Pia is different in flavors with a special dip prepared from Japanese apricot.

The Health Benefits of Chocolate : Can Chocolate Benefit Your Health ?

Chocolate is one of the most popular sweet-tasting treats in the world and has been for centuries. But part of the myth surrounding chocolate is that if it tastes so good, it must be bad for your health.

But the surprising news from the scientic community is that this reputedly decadent treat actually has some health benefits, especially if your choose chocalate wisely.

Is chocolate A Health Food ?

Chocolate contains more than 300 chemicals, and has been the subject of a number of studies by universities and other scientific organizations. Here's a quick rundown of the results (Note, we have no way of proving or disproving these claims so we offer them here as a stimulus for further research. If you're really interested in the subject, this may provide you with a starting point.)

- Cacao, the source of chocolate,contains antibacterial agents that fight tooth decay. Of course, this is counteracted by the high sugar content of milk chocolate.

- The smell of chocolate may increase theta brain waves, resulting in relaxation.

- Chocolate contains phenyl ethlylamine, a mild mood elevator.

- The cocoa butter in chocolate contains oleic acid, a mono-unsaturateed fat which may riase good cholesterol.

-Drinking a cup of hot chocolate before meals may actually diminish appetite.

- Men who eat chocolate live a year longer than those who don't

-The flavanoids in chocolate may help keep blood vessels elastic.

- Chocolate increases antioxidant levels in the blood.

- Mexican healers use chocolate to treat bronchitis and insect bites.

-The carbohydrates in chocolate raise serotonin levels in the brain, resulting in a sense of well-being.

What Chocolate Won't Do

There are many myths and half-truths about the effects of chocolate on the human body. Here are the lastest findings on several of them.

-Studies show that chocolate is not a causative factor in acne.

- Cacao contains the stimulants caffeine and bromine, but in such small quantities that they don't cause nervous.

- Chocolate is not addictive.

-Chocolate contains stearic acid, a neutral fat which doesn't raise bad cholesterol.

-Chocolate doesn't make you high. You'd need to eat a huge quatity(about 25 pounds at one sitting) to feel any noticeable effect.

But On The Negative Side...

1. Chocolate may trigger headacheds in migraine sufferers
2.Milk chocolate is high in calories, saturated fat and sugar.

What about Chocolate and Your Pets ?

Chocolate is considered dangerous to animals because it contains a stimulant called theobromine, which they can't digest.

Dark chocolate and baking chocolate are even more dangerous bacause they contain higher concentration of the substance. This applies whether chocolate is in candy bar form or and ingredients in cake, cookies, puddings or ice cream.

If a pet becomes ill after eating chocolate, take it to the vet immediately.

Dark Chocolate Versus Milk Chocolate
Dark chocolate contains more cacao and less sugar than milk chocolate. It follows tht any health benefits would be more pronounced in dark chocolate.

Dark chocolate is allowed on the popular Montaignac diet while milk chocolate is not.

You'll need to do a little research if you have any health concerns about eating chocolate. But with products like gluten-free and sugar-free brand finging their wat onto supermarket shelves, you're sure to find some form of chocolate you can enjoy with a clear conscience

What Are the Benefits of Milk?

From the time we were children, we listened to our parents tell us of all the benefits of milk and as a result, we were expected to drink at least one glass per day.

As we became older, many of us shucked the idea of drinking milk either because we felt we were too "grown" to have to drink milk, or because we had become conscious of our figures and felt milk would have a detrimental effect on that part of us. In lieu of milk, we switched to other dairy products or vitamins in order to still receive the correct intake of Vitamin D and Calcium.

As we became older, many of us shucked the idea of drinking milk either because we felt we were too "grown" to have to drink milk, or because we had become conscious of our figures and felt milk would have a detrimental effect on that part of us. In lieu of milk, we switched to other dairy products or vitamins in order to still receive the correct intake of Vitamin D and Calcium.

Strangely, the analogy here is that if we went through that much trouble to still receive the benefits of milk, we knew that there was something in milk that our bodies were able to utilize. According to an article published on the Internet by the Newer Knowledge of Milk, there are several benefits of milk: the ability to prevent osteoporosis, hyper tension, and colon cancer. And most importantly, these benefits are derived from an intake of fluid milk, not simply vitamins or other sources.

Drinking milk also helps reduce the incidence of tooth decay. There is no evidence to support the theory that drinking chocolate milk aids in tooth decay, and as a result, allowing children to drink chocolate milk increases their consumption of milk. One of the major contributing factors to many people shucking the benefits of milk for a substitute source is the belief that drinking milk will cause them to gain weight. There is no evidence that drinking the required servings of dairy products such as milk contribute to a person being overweight.

Clearly lactose intolerant individuals need to supplement with a non-dairy product. But for everyone else, we should shy away from drinking milk. We did it when we were 5, and we can definitely do it when we are 80. The benefits of drinking milk stay the same!